3 Steps To Being A Thought Leader

In the new world of work, mediocrity and conformity are the enemies to creativity and innovation. With easy mobility of human resources and availability of information on the web, employers and organisations are spoilt for choices in recruitment.

However, good talent is still highly valued by companies and good talent with an area of expertise or thought leadership is even more highly prized.

Strong personal brands demonstrate expertise and thought leadership in their areas of work. Not surprisingly, they are highly sought after by organisations. Strong brands are known not for many things, but that one special thing which sets them apart from the rest of the competition.

I would like to share with you 3 steps to being a thought leader.

Identifying Your Thought Leadership 1. What is the dream that you have always wanted to become?2. Is this expertise something that you are very passionate about?3. Are you able to use this expertise as part of your mission to serve a community, country or world?4. Even if there are no tangible rewards in doing this, would you still be willing to use this expertise to serve others?

Developing Your Thought Leadership1. What are the ways that you can develop your expertise? Think of courses and seminars to attend, professional networks to join, qualifications to attain, mentors who can help you grow,etc?2. Are you willing to continue to learn and grow professionally as long as you can?3. What are the opportunities that you can seek to share, practice and work on this? It’s the culmination of the small steps you take which brings you to the top of the ladder.

Standing Out For Your Thought Leadership1. What projects can you work on to achieve recognition, awards and credibility from people or organisations? Endorsement by others is essential to being acknowledged as a thought leader.2. How can you communicate your thought leadership to others?Think of blogging, articles submission, audio and video recordings, writing books, giving talks, conferences, forming groups, etc3. Include components of your thought leadership in your daily communications with people, like your tagline, personal brand statement, elevator pitch, videobio, tweets, blogposts, other type of messages. Some of these can be used as your email signatures.

Finally, achieving the recognition of being a thought leader of your field in your group, department, organisation, industry or country requires the passion to see it through. That is why it is not surprising that many well-known thought leaders like Steve Jobs, Warren Buffet, Jeff Bezos, Walt Disney and many others started off as individuals who were unknowns, unrecognised and unbelieving

Dubbed 'The Personal Branding Guru’ by Entrepreneur magazine, William Arruda is a pioneering brand strategist, speaker, author and founder of Reach Personal Branding. He is credited with turning the concept of personal branding into a global industry.

William delivers keynotes and workshops on the transformative power of personal branding for some of the world’s most successful companies. He energizes and motivates his audiences—and his private clients include some of the world’s most influential leaders. As a thought-leader, William is a sought-after spokesperson on personal branding, social media and leadership. He has appeared on BBC TV, the Discovery Channel and Fox News Live and he’s been featured in countless publications, including Time Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the New York Times. William is the coauthor of the bestselling book Career Distinction. He is a member of the International Coach Federation and the National Speakers Association. He holds a Master’s Degree in Education.